Leighton Meester and Garrett Hedlund, the former #1 on my Five List, were apparently hooking up at one of the Globe afterparties. They met on the set of Country Strong, currently in theatres. They apparently hook up in the movie too. I still haven’t seen it. Because after my friend Michelle, whose taste I trust very much, told me about the “bird”, I’m afraid of how embarrassed I’ll be for Gwyneth Paltrow when I’m watching it.

Anyway, there’s certainly a cynical approach you can take with this supposed new romance. But at the same time, when both are currently b-list at best – love to Leighton, yes, but it’s not like she’s Anne Hathaway or anything – I’m not sure how news about them dating is going to drive people to see the movie. To me, this sounds legit.

I like it. It works for me. He’s still not going back on the Five List but it works for me. Why isn’t he going back on the Five List? Look at him on the carpet at the Golden Globes. Endearing that he still can’t pose for a photo, yes, but endearing is not enough to make my boner happen. Maybe I really do need to see him in Country Strong. He’s much better in motion.

Also, on the point of whether or not there’s strategy involved, several readers sent me these videos taken at the Country Strong premiere a few weeks ago. There’s a lot of Photo Assumption you can play here. Photo Assumption says she was really, really happy to see him. And that he was just as happy to see her. And that they are friends… with a lot of affection for each other. And that that affection has Potential. And when they realised how happy they were to be together, they wanted to be together more.

Meester was dating Sebastian Stan when she shot Country Strong. Which is perhaps why she and Hedlund were not to be. Then. She and Stan broke up around the time Country Strong wrapped. Maybe because she was fighting her attraction to Hedlund? But they both had to work through the summer and couldn’t connect? And now that they’re promoting the movie, it’s good timing. I guess? Jesus I sound like a fanhard.




Photos from FilmMagic/Frazer Harrison/Jason Merritt/Gettyimages.com